Gujarat HC judge offers an apology to fellow judge after losing temper in courtroom

Gujarat HC judge offers an apology to fellow judge after losing temper in courtroom

Ahmedabad: Two days after a video went viral showing a senior judge from the Gujarat High Court engaging in an argument with a fellow judge during a court session due to a disagreement on a matter, the senior judge, Justice Biren Vaishnav, opened the court session on Wednesday with an apology to his colleague.

The incident took place on Monday, October 23, between Justice Vaishnav and puisne judge Justice Mauna Bhatt when Justice Vaishnav was delivering an order, and Justice Bhatt expressed disagreement with it.

Justice Vaishnav today began the session by saying, “What happened on Monday shouldn’t have happened. I was wrong. I am sorry for that, and we begin a new session.” Justice Vaishnav said this in the presence of Justice Mauna Bhatt, who was part of the same bench.

Although the video of the Monday session with Judges Vaishnav and Bhatt was removed from the official YouTube page of the Gujarat High Court, a circulating video on social media showed Justice Bhatt whispering something to Justice Vaishnav during the order’s delivery.

In response, Justice Vaishnav reacted, saying, ‘Then you differ…We have differed in one, we can differ in the other.’ Justice Bhatt replied, “This isn’t about disagreement.” In turn, Justice Vaishnav stated, “Then please do not murmur; instead, issue a separate order.” “We aren’t taking any other matters,” he further said before leaving the courtroom. DeshGujarat